Freight-car grain-door.



E. L. SMITH.

WITNESSES l 5 WW FREIGHT CAR GRAIN DOOR.v APPLICATION ms!) JAN.8.19'1?.

Patented Au 28; 1917.

2 SHEETSSHEF.T 2.

INVENTOR Ewzeat Z5312 i'th/ yam.

ATTORNEY nimus'r L. smrn, or secure, IOWA.

l FREIGHT-CAR GRAIN JUDGE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

latentcd Aug. @8, 19 1?.

Application filed January 8, 1917. Serial No. 141,219.

provements in Freight-Car Grain-Doors, or

which the following is a specification The present invention relates to improvements in freight car constructions and regates particularly to grain doors for such cars.

In carrying out my invention it 1s my purpose to provide a freight car with a metallic door that may be easily and quickly v positioned to close the door opening, and locked in such position, and which, when not thus, employed may be arranged upon the side of the car in a firmly supported condition to occupy only a small. amount of space.

It is a further object of the invention to provide the door posts of a freight car with means for engaging with the flanged or cleated edges of a metallic door, said means being operable to securclv lock the door against the door posts as well as to permit of the removal of the doorfrom the door opening when the said door is not required for closing the said opening.

. It is'a still further object of the invention to produce a metallic door for freight cars,

the same having its edges flanged or other-- are adaptwise provided with members that ed to engage with vertically arranged elements upon the door posts, one of said elei ne s comprising a pivoted member which, whenswung in one direction will intercugage with one of the flanges on the door to swing the said door against the door posts and to bring the other flange of the said door into tight engagement with the other element upon the door post, and to also providc means for locking the swinging element as well as means for engaging with the door to retainthe same agalnst vertical movement.

It is astill further object of the invention to provide upon one of the door posts of a freight car a vertically eccentrically mount upon the other door post a tension bar, to provide the latter with locking means, to produce a sectional metallic door which has its ends inturned or otherwise provided with flanges one adapted to engage with the vertical plate upon one of the door posts and the other to receive the arranged plate, to

tension bar, when the said bar is swung in a line with the post upon which it is pivoted, and whereby the said bar-is swung against the side of the post to move the door longitudinally to-bring the flanges of the same into tight and with the tension bar, and to lock the .tension bar in such position whereby to effectively secure the door in operative position; the door sections having flexible elements attached thereto which are supported from the ear, whereby to prevent the misplacement of the said sections, and the car having its sides provided with means for supporting the door sections from adjacent the top of the said bar, when the door is not in use, said supporting means insuring the door sections against displacement regard less of the vibrations to whichthedoor may be subjected.

It is a still further object of the invention, to provide a freight car with a removable v metallic door which shall have simple means whereby to lock the same in operative position and to support the same when in inoperative position, one which may be easily and conveniently handled, which shallbe of a comparativelv cheap construction to manufacture. which shall be practical and thoroughly efficient in operation.

With the above and other objects in view the improvement resides in the construction, combination and arrangement of parts set forth in the following specification and fall- -ing within the scope of the appended claim.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view through a portion of an ordinary hex freight car having its door 0 ening closed in accordance with this inventlon,

Fig. 2 is a horizontal sectional proximately on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is a similar sectional view but illustrating the position of the door and the arrangcment of the tension bar before the latter is swung to lock the door, or as when the door isto be removed,

Fig. 4 is a sectional view substantially similar to Fig. 1, but illustrating the arrangement of the door sections when not in use, 1 b Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the tension Fig. 6 is a detail horizontal sectional view approximately on the line 6-6 of Fig. 4.

eferring now to the drawings in detail,

engagement with the plate view apthe numeral- 1 designates a portion of an ordinary box car, and 22 the vertical posts at the door opening inv the side thereof.

Secured to one of the posts 2 and projecting preferably beyond the inner side thereof is a vertically arranged plate 3. The

projecting edge 4 of the said plate maybe offset with respect to the post 2, or the plate, if desired, may be formed with a vertically arranged flange providing the same with a lip or edge 4.

The other post 2, adjacent to the top of thecar, has secured thereto a plate or bracket 5 that is provided with a horizontally disposed ofiset portion or ear 6, the samehaving an opening to receive a short extension or trunnion 7 formed upon the upper edge and in a line with one of the corners of a tension bar 8. The lower edge of the bar- 8 is likewise provided with a trunnion 9 arranged, of course, upon the edge of the bar h provided with the trunnion 7, and the said in a suitable keeper member. 13 provided upon the bracket member 5, and in this connection it is to be stated, that suitable means may, if desired, be employed for retaining the lever looked upon the keeper. Upon the post 2 to which the tension bar 8 is eccentrically journaled is a small bracket member 14 that is provided with an angular flange or stud 15, the latter designed to contact with one of the edges of the tension bar 8 when the latter isswung against the post 2, and to contact with one of the sides of the said tension bar when the latter is swung angularly with respect to the longitudinal plane of the car or in a line parallel to the sides of the post. The bracket 14: may pr0- vide a bearing member for the tension bar, while its offset member or stud, in addition to limiting the swinging of the bar in onedirection, also serves as a reinforcing element for the sald bar to prevent the bending of the bar at the center thereof when the latter is under strain.

The improved door may comprise a single element, or may, and as illustrated by the drawings, comprise two sections. .The door is constructed of suitable sheet metal and has its ends provided with continuous inturned flanges 16 and .17 respectively,'one of the said flanges designed to engage with the lip 4 of the plate 2, and the other flange 17 adapted to receive the outer edge of the tension bar 8, when the latter is first'swung right angularlv with respect to the longitudinal plane of the car. and to wholly receive the said tension bar when the latte-r meshes when in such position the lever 12 is broiiight until the lever is swungfree from the keeper;

and the tension bar turned'upon its journal bearings.

To insure the door 18 against outward movement at the lower edge thereof, I preferably secure to the sill of the car between the posts 2-2 a cleat l9, and to'prevent a movement of the door in an upward vertical direction, I arrange upon the confronting sides of the posts 2 suitable catch members 20 which engage with the said door 18.

While I have broadly indicated the door by the character 18, the same, as previously stated, and as disclosed by the drawings, comprises two sections, the lower section A being ofa greater width than the upper section B, and the said upper section B upon its inner face and lower edge is formed with an ofiset portion or plate 21, and upon its outer face with depending flanges or fingers 22 disposed opposite the plate 21, and between the said fingers and the said plate the upper edge of the section A is adapted to be received, when the sections are assembled.

It is one of the objects of the presentinvention to provide means for supporting the door sections A and B against the side of the car when the door is not in use, and to accomplish this I secure to the uprights of the car frame, above the sheathing on the inner sides of the car, bracket members 23-23, the said brackets being disposed to the opposite sides of the doorway to receive the lower edges of the door sections A and B. The brackets are so disposed as to permit of the upper edges of the door sections being arranged only a slight distance below; the upper horizontal rail of the frame as d consequently a vertical movement of the said sections, incident to the vibrations to which I the car is subjected will be halted by contact with the said rail 24. I may, however, if I find the same desirable, employ suitable latch or bolt members 25 that are secured to the rail 24 and engage with the outer faces of the door sections at the outer portions thereof, and thus positively insure the door sections against movement in a vertical or lateral direction. The longitudinal move ment of the door sections is prevented by their flanges 16 and 17 being disposed beis swung against'the side of the post'2"ain'd"- ti een certain of the uprights in frame arranged for :1

edition to this, if se of eeeli oi the sections 5 a chain 526, and e i lmil' outer links se- 2', as i lustrated upon Wing's, or be meet in lo: 'tmiie rod the meter *1 mil 'eeurecl to the mil it will or e to t w ion the chain is brought 831g? e with llilfi nner offset end of the guide rod; 28 the longitudi- -l movement of the door section inward y i r in t le direction. of tire end of A mt/eel, and the movement outward didooe opening will be egemenl; witli the in this eoi'meo' t will tie notedi by reference to the draw that the flanged end. of he floor section A, WlQi'l the l ttor is supported upon the brackets er ngecl inwardly of the lip at of the plete :3 and this orrenqeiiient provides odditozml means for pirevemiiig an J" q nv were o.

cured t:

in UV if one a tile pom post of the flanged ends adapted one to receive the lip to reoeive theuoted ee'ciiient'al swinging oi the said sec tieii;

From the above description, taken in con-- nection with the accompanying" drawings, the simplioity of the device, as Well as the advantages thereof will, it is thought, be perfeetly apparent to those skilled in the art to which sucli invention opperteiiis "Withom; further detailed description.

Having what I claim is A car having a vertically disposed plate provided with a lip secured to one of the posts of its door opening, an eccentrioellg; mounted swinging member upon the othier door opening, a, door having of the plate and the other swinging member when the letter 13 moved to one position, and locking means for the winging member when the latter is fully received in the flange of the door end. turned against the door post In testimony whereof I my signature L thus described the invention, 

